Nearly 200 athletes turned out for the first stage of the Portugal youth beach volleyball national championships

Espinho,
Portugal, June 27, 2013 – Nearly 200 athletes turned out for the first stage of
the youth beach volleyball national championship, breaking a registration
record for the season opener at Espinho, in the local Center for High
Performance.

Despite being
the season opener for the majority of the athletes, great potential and quality
was shown by the youth prospects with fair play standing throughout the
weekend.

The U16 Girls
had the most registrations, with athletes from across the country attending the
event. The superiority of Ana Matos and Margarida Vasques was confirmed at the
final, edging Beatriz Lacerda and Cristiana Reis by 2-0 (21-15, 21-18). Ana
Batista and Mariana Costa achieved the 3rd place after beating
Beatriz Barroso and Sofia Castro.

The two top
teams from the U16 Boys meet again in an emotive final. Despite the first set
being won by Cardoso and Alves (21-9) the second was taken by Jardim and Almeida
(21-12), who also won the tie-break (16-14). Pedro Morais and Miguel Ferreira
stood 3rd in the ranking.

The U18 event
allowed the athletes to compete in their first classic format tournament
(double elimination). Participated by 24 teams, the girls’ event revealed new
talents for beach volleyball. The 2012 runner-up team, Ana Montenegro and Francisca
Silva, won the stage by reaching the semifinal from the losers’ table by
defeating Ana Afonso and Gabriela Coelho – one of the most promising team of
the competition. Inês Soares and Maria Ferreira reached the 3rd
place.

In the boys’
event, the 2012 champions Francisco Pombeiro and José Jardim continued their
path of victories, despite the good resistance of their opponents, like
Neto/Santos who was playing at home, while Bernardo Silva and Francisco Brito
came in 3rd. The quality presented by this age group encourages the
work being done at the Centers for High Performance.

Several U20
teams that integrate the pre-selected U19 World Championship list made their
presence and competed at the highest level at Espinho. Ana Gomes and Rita Neto
beat Maria Tinoco and Margarida Reis, who debuted in the championship, in one
of the closest final of the event 2-1 (22-20, 16-21, 15-8). Daniela Silva and Sara
Castro won the 3rd place match.

The boys also
put up a show, as some healthy rivalries from previous years were head-to-head
at the semifinals, both decided in three sets. Nuno Santiago and Francisco
Ferreira were crowned winners by edging João Oliveira and Jorge Graça 2-0 (21-16,
21-15). Diogo Maia and Artur Resende achieved the 3rd place.

Top prospects
for the Senior National Circuit will certainly emerge soon from this age group.